Sunday, December 28, 2008

Cold Calling Mistakes - 8 Tips To Avoid

By Brian McCoy

1) Know Your Call's Goal

Before you even dial the phone, you should have a clear understanding of your call's purpose and what your end goal is. What direction do you want your potential client to head in after the call? If you fail to plan, you won't achieve the goal for your call.

2) Giving Away The Goods

When your prospect says, "Send me some information," that does not translate into them reading that information. Do not oblige them and send information just as a means to get off of the phone. Find out if they really want the information, or if they are just trying to get rid of you.

3) Bad Phone Manners

Good manners and phone etiquette seem fairly simple. However, when you are on the phone, you might not even realize that what you are doing is obnoxious to the person on the other end of the line. It is best to not chew gum, eat, drink, or be trying to do other things while you are making a call. You will be distracted as well as your prospect.

4) Listen Up

If you want to know what your prospect is thinking, just listen to them. Make sure that you do not monopolize the conversation. Poor listening skills will lead to failure.

5) Don't Make Your Fears Theirs

Just because your client is busy at the moment does not mean that they do not ever want to talk to you. Do not read negativity into somewhere that it is not. Just because you are afraid that they don't want to talk to you, doesn't mean that they don't.

6) Not Asking Enough Questions

To find out what you need to know about your prospects, it is critical that you ask enough questions so that you can qualify them. Everyone loves to talk about their own life experiences, their family, and other things that interest them. By asking the right questions, you will build rapport and show interest in what is important to them.

7) Preparation In Key

You would be foolish to enter into an important presentation with little to no preparation. The phone is absolutely no different. Take some time to think over what you have to say. It might also be helpful to role play with a friend or loved one. Find out what areas you need to work on and smooth out the rough spots.

8) Ask For It

You need to give your prospect a call to action. You want them to follow up with what you're telling them by having them do their own due diligence. By asking them to do something for you, you can then follow up with them and see what their own research turned up. - 15359

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